Intercultural Communication Studies V:1 1995 Chu-Hsia Wu On the Cultural Traits of Chinese Idioms Chu-hsia Wu Department of Foreign Languages and Literature National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan, ROC This study is designed to provide a basis for a theory of Chinese idioms 'chengyu' as a phenomenon in natural language. The study focuses on a description of idioms and formations of idioms with emphasis on the exploration of cultural traits to historical backgrounds. Idioms are defined as 'chengyu' usually in four-character form, distinguished by form, meaning, function, and sources from literary works or sayings. Most Chinese idioms have to be distinguished from other lexemes by virtue of their conventional implicature. Understanding the cultural traits of Chinese idioms helps people better understand Chinese communication both within the culture and across cultures. 0. Introduction The Chinese idioms1 'chengyu' 2 lie near the heart of the Chinese language. It is a special category of lexical items which not only distinguish themselves by their constituent relations, but also show singular types of intrinsic grammatical structure. Idiom's integrated sense lies in the whole unit as defined in 1.2, thus each idiom can be considered as a single lexeme. As a consequence, the communicative use of idioms in 61 Intercultural Communication Studies V:1 1995 Chu-Hsia Wu integrated expressions or sentences is recognized. By analyzing the constituent relations, and the idiom's grammatical functions relating to other expressions or sentences, the purpose is to provide a basis for a theory of idioms as a phenomenon in natural languages. A description as well as formations of Chinese idioms with emphasis on the exploration of cultural traits to historical backgrounds are presented in this study. 1. A Survey of Definitions of Idioms There are abundant lexemes and a variety of set phrases in Chinese. Idiom is one of them. What are idioms? According to the literal meaning of the term, idioms are ready- made or set phrases. The definitions of idioms provided in the traditional dictionaries such as Ts'u-yuan (1915)3 , Ts'u-hai (1936)4, and Hanyu cidian (1936) (Chinese dictionary) are very general. The more detailed definitions of idiom are given in the standard dictionaries published at a later time, such as the revised version of Ts'u-hai (1963), Xiandai hanyu cidian (1959) (Modern Chinese dictionary ); and two other representative works such as Xiandai hanyu zhishi (1973) (Modern Chinese knowledge) and Xiandai hanyu (1975) (Modern Chinese). 1.1 Definitions Given in Various Representative Dictionaries The definitions of idiom are given in the various standard dictionaries listed below. In Ts'u-yuan (1915): An idiom is a form of old expression. Those that become prevalent in society and could be referred to their historical allusions, and express one's ideas are called idiom (Ma 1978: 1; Shi 1979: 3)5. In Ts'u-hai (1936): An idiom is a form of old expression. Those that become prevalent in society and which could express one's ideas are called idiom. The sources of idioms are mainly the Chinese classics, poems, and other standard works, or arose from ballads and common sayings6 which are well known and widely used in society by the common folk on a daily basis (Ma 1978: 1; Shi 1979: 3).7 62 Intercultural Communication Studies V:1 1995 Chu-Hsia Wu In Hanyu cidian (1936): An idiom is a form of old expression. Those that become prevalent in society are called idiom (Ma 1978: 1; Shi 1979: 3). 8 In Xiandai hanyu cidian (1959), an idiom is described as: Idioms are set phrases and short sentences, usually in pithy forms with concise meanings, prevalent in society, used by the common folk, which have seen ages of constant use. Idioms are mostly composed of four characters. The meanings for some of them are not difficult to deduce from the constituents, such as 'xiao3 ti2 da4 zuo4‘ 9 - make an issue out of a minor theme', which means 'to fuss about trifles', 'hou4 lai2 ju1 shang4' - 'those that started late get ahead', which means 'later started finish first', etc.. On the other hand, with some idioms, their meanings cannot be directly gained from their constituents unless we know the semantic fields or the historical sources such as the incident, or the background from which the particular set phrase comes about. Examples of this are 'zhao1 san1 mu4 si4' - '*three in the morning and four in the evening', which means 'chop and change', or 'of two minds about'; 'bei1 gong1 she2 ying3' - '*the reflection of a bow in a cup a snake'10 which means 'take every bush for a bugbear', etc. (Ma 1978: 2; Shi 1979: 9). 11 In the new version of Ts'u-hai (1963): An idiom is a type of fixed phrase, usually in four-character form with varying constituent constructions and diverse origins. The meanings for some of them can be deduced from their constituents, such as 'wan4 zi3 qian1 hong2' - '*ten- thousand purple thousands red', which means 'resplendent colors in their full glory'; 'cheng2 feng1 po4 lang1' - '*ride wind break wave', which means 'sail before the wind', or 'brave the winds and waves' etc.. By contrast, in the case of some idioms, their meanings cannot be directly inferred from their constituents unless we know the semantic fields 63 Intercultural Communication Studies V:1 1995 Chu-Hsia Wu or reference of the original historical allusions to which the particular set phrase refers. Examples of this are 'wo4 xin1 chang2 dan3' -'*lie on firewood and taste the galls', which means 'go through thick and thin', or 'to nurse vengeance'; and 'po4 fu3 chen2 zhou1' - '*smash the cauldron and sink the boat', which means 'go for broke' or 'fight to the last ditch', etc. (Ma 1978: 2). 12 1.2 Definitions Provided in Representative Works More thorough explanations concerning idioms are provided in the following two works, Xiandai hanyu zhishi (1973), and Xiandai hanyu (1975). These two works were published later than the above dictionaries, the structure, or form, meaning, and function of idioms, was given. In Xiandai hanyu zhishi (1973): Idioms are set phrases which are formed through ages of constant use. They are also called 'ready-made phrases' by some people. Two distinctive characteristics of idioms are: (1) The meaning of an idiom is not likely to be inferable from its constituents. (2) The internal components are fixed, that is, none of its constituents can be replaced by any other elements, nor can the constituent order be changed (Shi 1979: 8). 13 In Xiandai hanyu (1975): An idiom is a set phrase, shaped through the practice of the language for ages of constant use. Its meaning cannot be simply inferred from its constituents. Its structure cannot be freely changed, nor could its constituents be replaced by any other elements unless it is required for a specific need or purpose. An idiom functions as one lexeme in full expressions or sentences. However, it behaves more vividly and symbolically than its synonyms represented by common lexemes (Shi 1979: 9). 14 64 Intercultural Communication Studies V:1 1995 Chu-Hsia Wu 1.3 A Generalized Definition of Idioms Many of the definitions of idioms mentioned are thorough. They take into account the (1) broad understanding, (2) structure or form, (3) semantics, (4) function, and (5) sources of the idioms. Broad Understanding An Idiom is an old expression, prevailed in society for a long period of time. Structure or Form An idiom is a set phrase, or short sentence. It is usually in four-character form, with varying constituent constructions. The internal constituent relations are fixed. None of its constituents can be changed or replaced by any other element. Semantics The meanings for most of idioms can be deducible from their constituents. With some of the idioms, the integrated meanings are unlikely to be directly inferred from their constituents. Function An idiom functions as one lexeme in full expressions or sentences. However, it behaves more vividly and symbolically than its synonyms represented by common lexemes. Since idioms are usually in four-character form, they function as a special type of lexeme in full expressions or sentences rather than as a common lexeme. According to Shi (1979: 6) and Ma (1978: 69), this aspect, however, is the primary criterion to distinguish idioms from commonly used phrases 'putongcizu'. Idioms can function as subject, object, verb, adjective, adverb, adverbial phrase, verb complement in sentences. Allusive Origins The sources of idioms are mainly the classics, poems, and other standard works, or arose from ballads and common sayings 'suyu' or 'suyan'. Shi (1979) claimed that colloquialisms, such as ballads and common sayings which contain allusions to historical, quasi-historical, legendary, or mythical persons or events, are the main source of idioms. Through the span of time, a great number of poetic lines and common sayings of high literary quality became conventional in society. As such they were widely used by the common folk, and also adopted by scholars in their literary writings. Once they survived the test of time and were used in literary writings, their status as idioms was established. Therefore, Shi (1979) 65 Intercultural Communication Studies V:1 1995 Chu-Hsia Wu argued that colloquialism is the primary origin of idioms rather than the written form. In fact, these two sources are mutually dependent. The colloquialism may have incorporated some fragments of the literary language 'wenyan'. And Chinese proverbial use is so interwoven with the spoken language that Chinese scholars cannot possibly ignore it in their writings altogether. For some idioms, it is even harder to tell whether their real origins were in the classical or the oral traditions.